The present invention is directed to improvements in means for operating uneven parallel bars employed in women's gymnastics.
Conventional uneven parallel bars provide for three adjustments in the respective positions of the two parallel handrails, i.e. variation of the spacing between the handrails by adjustment of a pair of transverse struts extending between the handrails, and adjustment of the respective heights of the upper and lower handrails relative to the floor by adjustment of a pair of telescopic vertical supports at each end of the handrails. These adjustments, particularly the spacing between the handrails, vary from gymnast to gymnast due to differences in height and body proportions. It has long been recognized that, in practice and competition, the need to perform these adjustments for each gymnast consumes excessive time and effort.
To overcome this problem, appartus for automatic adjustment of the spacing between the handrails has been developed as shown, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,402,501 and 4,491,314. However, such spacing adjustment apparatus has certain shortcomings. First, no provision is made for automatic control of the other two adjustments, i.e. the vertical heights of the two handrails relative to the floor surface. In addition, such adjustment of the spacing between the handrails requires movement of the tensioning cables which brace the apparatus against horizontal displacement, thereby requiring either elaborate cable tension control apparatus as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,491,314, or manual adjustment of the cables as mentioned in U.S. Pat. No. 4,402, 501. Such systems do not, therefore, provide a particularly complete or feasible solution to the problems involved in performing all of the necessary adjustments prior to each gymnast's performance.
When gymnasts progress to a relatively high skill level, where the emphasis is on giant swings and similar maneuvers requiring maximum spacing of the handrails from each other, many other types of maneuvers requiring closer spacing of the handrails are precluded. It is believed that greater variety and beauty in uneven bar performances by highly skilled gymnasts would result if the limitations of the bar apparatus, which force the gymnast to choose between types of maneuvers, could be overcome.